1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates to creating customized ringtones of the type used with mobile phones to alert a recipient of incoming calls.
2. Background Art
Mobile phones have become a platform for personal expression—with colorful covers and individual ring-tones, they've become a fashion statement as well. As a result, a new market has emerged to fill the need for individualized ring-tones. For a few dollars, phone owners can “download” ring-tones of favorite songs from a variety of providers. This has created a large, growing market to supply these ringtones.
With the emergence of handsets that can play “polyphonic” ringtones or, better yet, “realistic” ringtones, there is an untapped market opportunity for the complete customization of ringtones. While customers can order their favorite music as a ringtone, even a technically savvy person would have a difficult time doing any of the following: creating polyphonic ringtones of specific phrases of music; creating ringtones of a less-widely known piece of music; modifying the sound characteristics of a phrase of music (e.g., changing the echo, reverb, speed, octave, creating robotic effects, filtering out the voice, reproducing only the percussion, etc.); and recording their own ringtone.